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Little Trinity Church is a bit of an anachronism. For 165 years – while the rest of Toronto grew up, secularized and loosened its belt – the sleepy stone building has gone about its business, quietly occupying a leafy plot at King St. E. near Parliament St.
It was here, at what is now the oldest original church building in the city, that the Toronto Star Santa Claus Fund got off to a modest start. And a century later, Little Trinity is still along for the ride.
"There is so much hype around Christmas, so much commercialization and all these fantastic toys that are out there," says Rev. Chris King.
"And there are so many families that can't afford to both stay solvent and give a gift."
The Star gift boxes, he says, are "pure grace. The family doesn't have to do anything, it doesn't have to pay anything. It just receives something from a stranger."
Little Trinity literature says it was built to serve the religious needs of working class Irish Protestants. By the turn of the 20th century, the outlook for many parishioners was grim: homes in the area still typically lacked hydro, hot water and winter insulation.
Legend has it that in 1906, the Anglican church's new appointee, Rev. Hilliard Dixon, approached the Star's publisher, Joseph Atkinson, a member of his congregation, with an idea.
If Atkinson could use his growing newspaper to tell readers about needy children, maybe money could be raised to buy fruit, candy, socks and mitts for 100 youths that were on Little Trinity's list of needy kids.
Atkinson, who had grown up in a poor household in Newcastle, Ont. after his father died, didn't need much convincing. With a larger mandate, the Santa Claus Fund was born.
"I think Joseph Atkinson found he was one in heart and mind with the people who were here at the time, including the minister," said King. "Also people like the Gooderhams and Worts (distillery) families. Joseph Atkinson was within a community that, from its very inception, was outward looking."
Today, Little Trinity's congregation delivers about 500 boxes to households in nearby Regent Park and Moss Park – a fraction of the 45,000 that go out to families throughout the GTA.
Head volunteer Dorothy McKim, who's in charge of sorting the boxes when they arrive at the church and overseeing the distribution, says, "It's a privilege to help out.
"People have been very willing. We're very aware of our location and responsibility. It's one way of fulfilling our responsibility to the community," said McKim, a retired teacher and guidance counsellor.
Members of the church aren't the only people who lend a hand.
"The one thing that really touched me last year was a young man who came in and told me he received Star boxes as a child in Regent Park, and that he had made a practice of coming back to get boxes to deliver," said McKim.
Reverend King understands the appeal.
"There is that personal connection from the (Santa Claus Fund) boxes. People can write cheques, and that's great, but it's an impersonal thing to write a cheque or to receive money. But to actually have someone you don't know come to your door and hand over a gift, it's a very personal thing.
"There's human contact. It gives ordinary people a chance to be engaged in something important."
If you have been touched by the Santa Claus Fund or have a story to tell, please e-mail santaclausfund@thestar.ca.
